Headstrong
by jadereesee
Summary: After her father died to keep her existence a secret from the rest of the world, Mei strives to make sure that his sacrifice was not in vain. A life spent on the run comes to an abrupt halt and a sudden discovery that leaves the woman's never-ending curiosity piqued and unsatisfied. Add creatures born of legend into the mix and she finds her mind spinning with untold possibilities
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I, of course, do not own Twilight nor any of the characters mentioned in this story outside of my own OCs, such as August and Mei.**

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Over time, the phrases that people live and shape their life to morph just as anything else.

For example, "Curiosity killed the cat," is a phrase commonly used to warn people about sticking their nose where it doesn't belong.

That was a phrase that Mei had always wrestled with.

Her unending curiosity had he in a constant state of questioning, of wondering and seeking to learn.

Through that, she uncovered the full saying which is one that she much preferred.

"Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back."

Though there was little satisfaction in the questions that she pondered due to the usual impossibility of uncovering answers, she still wondered.

Now, Mei pondered art.

Not just what a piece meant, though the thought itself had been brought on by a rather odd looking statue they had come across in the last town they passed through, Mei was ruminating over whether or not mortals even understood why the sought to create such beauty or such oddity.

As she thought, the woman sat on the bank of a small stream, elegant olive fingers digging into the damp earth at her sides as she watched a small water bug skim its way across the surface of the slow-moving brook.

The area in which she had been staying within for the past few days was quickly turning out to be one of Mei's favorites.

Her small coven comprised of no more than two spent so much time moving from place to place that she often forgot what it was like to truly enjoy being where you were.

Sure, they often took trips to remote tourist destinations such as famous mountains or canyons, but the grandeur of those places didn't compare to the gentle babbling of the stream at her side.

At least not to Mei.

Contentment in life came from enjoying the little things- that was what her father had told her many times as she grew older.

Her father had been as good of a man as any immortal could be expected to be. How long he had walked the Earth was a number that Mei had a hard time grasping herself, but it ultimately meant nothing.

He lived so long just to die to keep her a secret.

Truly, there was little surprise there. His adoration for his only child was well known by anyone who actually did know the pair, and conclusively, it had been his downfall.

Mei often wondered what would be her's.

The damp sound of leaves sliding over one another reached Mei's ears a moment before she sensed the hot white energy approaching her.

Mentally she caressed the pulsating edges of the force, gently soothing it before speaking.

"I thought you would have taken longer in town." She commented, not turning to look until a body was lowering itself down next to her in an impossibly graceful manner.

"Hunting was easy tonight. This town... it leaves much to be desired."

Finally raising her dark eyes to her companion, Mei searched her friend's expression. She took in his crimson irises and his easy smirk. That smirk was as familiar to her as his energy was, an old friend like himself.

There were many reasons that the woman disagreed with her friend, but there was a specific reason that she rolled her hazel eyes at his words.

"You picked this location, August." Mei reminded him, but that did nothing to damper the ebony skinned man's smug nature.

He was proud of the town that he chose for a very distinct reason and she already knew the question that was going to come next.

His lips parted and she flicked a long strand of her raven-colored hair over her shoulder, fixing him with a look.

"It would make you stronger, Mouse," August said, his words said in defense for an argument that he hadn't made yet made, but at this point, he didn't need to.

She was already well aware of what he wanted.

August had been trying to convince Mei to prey on humans since the day that her father had taken him under his wing as barely more than a newborn.

Still, Mei resisted. It was too much to feel the drain of their mortal energy onto her tongue. It wasn't something she could swallow- pun intended.

Nor was it necessary for her survival as it seemed to be for his, though she had heard whispers otherwise.

A coven in America with eyes like liquid amber due to their steady diet of animal blood.

August didn't believe the tales, he spoke of the tempting song of human blood in a way that made Mei lean more towards his beliefs as well.

Though she had never experienced such a thing, her friend and father had spoken of it in a way that made it sound as painful as it would be for a mortal to hold their breath or walk through a flame.

"I'm doing fine as is, thank you," Mei told him, her tone a bit sharper than it had been before.

She was exhausted by this familiar argument already.

Her lifestyle had been this way since shortly after her birth when her father found her sitting quietly beside of the human boy he had knocked out and brought to her.

He had a line of blood dribbling down his neck, the proof of her attempted feeding smeared like crushed berries across her lips, but she sat beside of him as still as a stone apart from the steady trail of tears flowing down her cheeks.

She couldn't stand feeding.

Her father brought her a wooden box only hours later that was filled with mortal rations.

"If the Volturi-" August began, but the male didn't get far as Mei spoke over him.

"The Volturi know nothing about me, about either of us." She reasoned, but the worry that creased August's ebony skin showed that he wasn't soothed.

"We could cross paths with someone, Mei. We've been running for longer than I care to keep up with. We are bound to run across others at some point. Your father-" August tried again.

"My father died to keep my existence a secret. He found you, saved you, to help me do the same." Mei hissed, her kind tone now replaced with something darker.

It was a tone shaped from years of fear, of sorrow.

It was her tone that had her friend backing down, his ruby irises regarding the dirt beneath him now that he had been properly scolded.

Watching him, Mei felt a tug in her chest and couldn't stop the sigh that pushed up from her lungs before she reached out to wrap slender fingers around his wrist, her skin in stark contrast to his.

"Making sure that his sacrifice was not in vain... that is the most important thing. I am sorry for suggesting otherwise." August said, his voice low while his words pulled a gentle smile on to the Japanese woman's lips.

"The most important thing is keeping us alive and safe from the critical eyes of others, Auggie. Honoring my father comes through that." She told him, her voice back to its usual gentle cadence as she gave his wrist a soft squeeze, not caring about the slight chill of his skin under her fingers.

Retracting her hand, Mei and August paid no mind to the smear of soil that she had left in her wake and instead, they both rose to their feet, Mei's movements slower than her companion's.

"Shall we move on?" Mei asked and August regarded her for a moment.

He knew that she had been enjoying the place that they were currently staying, but still he was reminded of his thoughts only moments before.

He had to keep Mei safe.

They had to keep moving.

"I'll grab our things. You think about where you want to go next. I am partial to South America." August said and before Mei could blink, let alone respond, he was only a blur racing through the trees.


	2. Chapter 2

After South America came the Middle East and after that was the Soviet Union.

More and more often, Mei and August were packing up their things and rushing from their current campsite.

Mei could tell when a vampire or human alike were in the area and too often had a nomad began to wander too close to where they had stopped, their eagerness to find something baffled the woman.

Never before had she actually felt energy reaching out to her like each new passersby's was without knowing her.

Only August's energy called for her in such a way.

It felt like people were actually looking for her now and she didn't know what to make of it.

It sent fear, sharp and hot, through her veins and she found herself losing more and more sleep.

August had left her to hunt, leaving her on the outskirts of a nearby village.

They were in the woods of Wiltshire, a quiet cozy spot with few people and even fewer immortals.

Wandering from their camp, Mei set about hunting down a rabbit and quickly returned to the camp in order to cook it over their small open fire.

August often brought human food back for the woman, but she could hunt and cook well enough over a fire that it wasn't always necessary. Besides, she knew it was only her that was stopping them from staying in the village overnight or simply running for days on end.

She wasn't too fond of being surrounded by people due to the overwhelming quality that their energy possessed, but she also couldn't run forever like August could.

Pulling the rabbit meat from the spits, the woman had just begun to nibble on the juicy meat when a flash of something had her freezing.

Reaching a hand out to the side, the woman focused on the energies that were coming closer.

She should have run, but something was keeping her frozen in place.

Her ears strained as she tried to understand what was happening.

Their energies called to her stronger than anyone's had before.

It was growing increasingly strange.

She knew that August would be livid that she hadn't fled.

"We've never met them. There is four." She muttered to herself, caressing the edges of the energy just to find that one caressed back. A soothing feeling spiked through her.

"They're unsure of what they are going to find, but two are gifted. One is..." Mei's voice trailed off as she tried to get a read on the intruders.

A gasp fell from her lips as a realization was made and again, she was on her feet in seconds flat.

She felt the four energies move closer more quickly now, the sound of them reaching her sensitive ears and she waited calmly, but not patiently, for them to emerge from the treeline.

"I know you're out there," Mei called out, feeling that the quartet had stopped.

As two of them stepped out into the small grove, Mei turned widened eyes to the two gifted vampires.

The blonde looked at her with obvious caution behind his golden eyes, he was poised to throw himself at her without a second's hesitation- the slip of a woman at his side confused her as she practically beamed.

"Hi, I'm Alice. I'm sure this is overwhelming." The brunette pixie spoke up and Mei couldn't help a small snort of amusement in response to her words.

Overwhelming was an understatement.

"Why are you here?" Mei asked, her tone hard but not biting even as she narrowed her eyes slightly at the blonde male.

"We wanted to meet you," Alice answered smoothly, but that did nothing to soothe Mei's fears.

Another wave of calm washed over her and Mei watched as the soothing energy lapped at her ankles after pouring from the male vampire.

"Please, stop doing that," Mei said simply, holding the amber eyes of the male who took a moment but nodded after the female elbowed him.

"This is Jasper, my mate." Alice introduced. "Like him, I have a gift. That's how I knew what you are."

She answered a question that Mei had never asked and that had her mind racing to uncover the gift that the woman possessed.

Mind reading perhaps? Maybe she got clear words while Mei only got impressions of things from an individual's energy.

Or perhaps...

"Why are you really here?" Mei asked, clarifying her earlier question. "And who waits for you in the trees?"

Alice traded a look with her mate at that before nodding her head once.

"We came to ask you for help," Jasper replied.

"My help?" Mei echoed the question, surprised by it.

"There is a lot to tell you, but we don't have much time," Alice said quickly. "My niece, she is much like you are. She is half-mortal, half-vampire, born to my brother and his mate."

That had Mei pausing, shocked by the reference to the mother in the present tense.

"The mother. She-"

"Yes, she is very much alive. Well, as much as I am in any case." Alice replied immediately. "But they are in trouble. The Volturi-"

Mei flinched at the name of the dreaded coven. It was them that caused her to live her life on the run and in hiding. It was them that made it where she couldn't interact with humans or vampires alike.

They killed her father.

They kept her in the dark.

It was obvious that the other two had caught her visceral reaction to the name and now, more confidently, Alice stated, "They are going to kill my family if you do not help us."

Her words were bold but sure and Mei found herself nodding without even really meaning to.

"They think that she is an immortal child," Mei stated and both vampires nodded.

"They kill the makers and child alike." She added, knowing as much firsthand.

She remembered her father's stoic face as his arms were ripped from his body.

She remembered the newborn child vampire being tossed into the flames in her place.

It had been a bait-and-switch to keep her alive and safe, and until that point, it had worked.

If the Volturi were in search of immortal children and would find a half-blood like herself, then her secret would no longer be safe.

There was no more hiding.

"Are you going to introduce me to your friends?" Mei asked them.

"Are you going to introduce us to yours?" Jasper asked in return and Mei knew he was referring to August even without the man currently being present.

Somehow they knew.

"You first." Mei insisted, pulling a tinkling laugh from Alice before she called out towards the energies in the treeline.

The woman watched with careful caution as a duo emerged from the trees where Alice and Jasper had a few minutes before.

They were dressed in traditional garb, perhaps that of some South American nation.

They regarded Mei with equal caution.

The first, a female, was a vampire like any other, her eyes red like August's.

The male at her side, however.

Mei swallowed hard, feeling as if she was standing at the edge of a cliff and trying to convince herself that she wouldn't fall, that her feet were very much planted on solid ground.

By all things holy, the last immortal that she laid her eyes on looked back at her with equal interest and curiosity.

It made sense for him to do something so similar as he was the closest thing to herself that she had ever come across- he was half-blooded as well.

Both human and vampire coursed through his being.

"My name is Nahuel, I believe that we have much in common."


	3. Chapter 3

Never in all of her travels had Mei come across someone like herself.

Never had she even entertained the fact that there could be others like herself out in the world, and now, there was one standing only paces away from her.

"You are..." She began, only trailing off when her mind spun and her tongue failed her.

"I am half-blood like yourself. Born to a human woman, fathered by a vampire." Nahuel said, smiling kindly over at her in what seemed to be hopes of reassuring her.

Mei wasn't sure that much could reassure her in that moment.

"This is my aunt." He continued, gesturing to the vampire woman beside of him. "She raised me and I turned her."

"You can't turn someone." She protested, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"Males have venom. Females do not." Nahuel said and Mei sucked in a deep breath.

There were others. Not only Nahuel but also Alice's niece who had attracted the eyes of the Volturi.

The niece that would expose the existence of her, _their_ , kind to those evil blood-thirsty _monsters_.

Mei felt that she may need to sit down.

"I know that this is all overwhelming," Alice said, her tinkling voice gentle as she looked at the shocked half-blood in front of her.

Without prompting from anyone, however, Nahuel was moving towards the small Asian woman.

"It is alright. This is a big revelation for all of us." He told her, pleased when the half-blood hadn't sent him flying away from her like Alice had warned she could very well do.

Energy manipulation was how the psychic vampire found best to describe the woman's gifts.

"So, why are you here for me if you have him?" Mei asked, looking from Nahuel's steady dark eyes over to the deathly pale couple that Jasper and Alice made.

"Nahuel is male and has tales of his sisters' differences from himself. We needed proof that females are harmless as well." Jasper explained.

The first thing that registered in Mei's mind was that they thought her harmless.

Without breaking her gaze from Jasper's, the dark-haired woman sucked the lifeforce from two large trees behind her, leaving them crumbling into dust that was picked up by the steady breeze blowing through the forest.

In another moment she had used that energy to lift two large boulders from their place along the nearby creekbed.

"Harmless when it comes to keeping the secret." Alice clarified and in the next second, the boulders had dropped back into place.

With that settled, the Japanese half-blood turned to look at her species-mate with open curiosity.

"Sisters?" Mei questioned and Nahuel nodded after pulling his eyes from the boulders behind her and snapping his loose jaw shut.

"My father is a busy man." He stated, the words coming out tight with dislike towards his sire.

Hatred towards a father was not something that Mei could relate to.

"So you want me to come as proof?" She questioned, seeking clarification.

She did not think that the Volturi cared about _evidence_.

They cared about power, _control_.

"As a witness," Alice replied with a small nod.

Mei considered her words, again thinking about the fact that whether she showed her face or not, the Volturi would still be made aware of her species. Not only that but with the four immortals standing in front of her- she was sure that they would be made aware of her as an individual as well.

She knew more than most about the leaders of the Volturi and their gifts.

She knew that a simple touch would let them know of their encounter with Mei.

"I will have to talk to my companion," Mei said, her voice soft as she masked her concern over that conversation.

There was no doubt that this simple interaction would have August in an absolute fit.

Her friend was her sole protector as well as her companion.

He would be mad that she hadn't simply flattened the intruders and more upset that he hadn't been there when a potential threat had arrived. Add the fact that there were others of her kind and that the Volturi would without a doubt be made aware of the existence of half-bloods and he was sure to lose it.

"August," Alice said with a smile and Mei had to hold back a protective snarl over her apparent knowledge of her friend.

August was her protector, but Mei never shied away from protecting him as well.

"It's good that you're wanting to talk to him. He's on his way back now." Alice continued, turning her golden gaze towards the trees to Mei's right.

True to her claims, it was only a few more tense seconds before August was throwing himself from the trees to land hissing in front of Mei.

Nahuel was sent stumbling more than a few steps back before August had crouched low in a defensive position in front of her.

"August, it is alright," Mei said from behind him, Japanese rolling off of her tongue as easy as breathing, but August's stance did not waver.

"Why are you still here? Why did you not run? Are you hurt?" He asked quickly, his eyes never leaving the intruders as Nahuel was helped to his feet by his aunt.

"I'm not hurt. I didn't run because I sensed them and found something interesting-" She began but August's sharp hiss cut her off.

"You and your frustrating _curiosity_." He spat, but she continued unperturbed by his anger.

"Look at Nahuel. Listen to his heartbeat." Mei directed her friend, her gift reaching out to nudge August's focus in the right direction towards the man she had named who had been standing in front of her when August had arrived.

"Mortal," August said, his voice slightly confused now.

"Not mortal. Half-blood, Auggie. He is like me." Mei insisted the excitement that she had felt at the wondrous discovery of Nahuel's existence now ringing clear in her voice.

There was a long beat of silence as her friend seemed to consider her words before he was slowly and cautiously straightening up to his full height.

"He is..." August began but soon trailed off.

"There is a lot to explain. I still have many questions myself." Mei told him, reaching out to place a slender hand on his shoulder before looking to Alice.

"Maybe start from the beginning for him. Start with your brother's mortal mate." She suggested.

Alice seemed to hesitate for a moment before her face slackened, her eyes wide and unseeing for a few long moments but since her mate didn't seem concerned, Mei tried not to as well.

After a pause, Alice seemed to come back into herself and smiled tightly, now looking at August.

"I will explain the best that I can, but it will have to be quick. We don't have much time."

It seemed that Alice was deadset on keeping a schedule that was invisible to the rest of them and after her rushed explanation of their presence and request had passed her lips, the explosion that Mei had been waiting for came.

"Are you all so full of yourselves?" He seethed at the petite female vampire, returning the defensive hiss that her mate had sent his way until Mei stepped up to tug at his elbow.

"You expect us to go to America and reveal Mei to the Volturi to save _your_ asses? Have you completely lost the plot?" He raved and Mei let him go on for a few moments as a venting exercise, most of his comments along the same lines as his previous ones, before she reached out to his energy and metaphorically grabbed onto it with both hands, diverting his attention to her and her alone.

"The Volturi are going to know either way, August. They are going to know and they will find us. It is better to have the protection and support of her family and their witnesses than to face it on our own when the time comes." She told him simply, her voice even and strong.

A few precious beats of silence followed her reasoning before August gave a sharp nod, his shoulders squaring as he turned to face the other four immortals with hot anger blazing behind his red eyes.

"We shall witness as you wish, but your manipulation does not go unseen." He told them all.

August was not so stupid as to think that the two Cullens hadn't known that they could simply see Mei, simply hear her heartbeat, and that would mean that she would have to come with them. That there would be no reason for her to not serve as a witness since the Volturi would know of her anyway.

It was a dirty scheme and it infuriated him as he cared more about Mei's life than his own.

Still, he knew that if he was in the others' position and it was Mei on the line then he would not be above doing the same.

"Noted." Alice said simply, her amber eyes flickering to the sky. "Now, we have a plane to catch."


	4. Chapter 4

There was never a plane ride that Mei had found more harrowing.

She was thankful to be tucked into a large first-class seat, a complimentary blanket thrown over her legs while August's jacket engulfed her slender form.

The half-blood wasn't cold, that was a non-issue for her, but she was seeking the comfort that the weight of both objects was providing.

For the first hour or so of the flight, Nahuel had tried to best to strike up a conversation with her. While usually the young woman would be filled to the brim with questions about his life and family and anything else that she could possibly think up, the waves of fear that continued to wash over her kept her from speaking.

Her silence paired with the low warning hisses from August any time the other half-blood began to push the slightest bit for Mei to speak led to the attempted conversation dissipating rather quickly.

As a perky female voice came over the intercom and announced that they would soon be arriving in Seattle, Mei swallowed hard.

She caught the golden eyes of the blonde male vampire and knew from their earlier altercation of gifts that the man could most likely feel her fear washing over him like the sea. She would have sworn he was regarding her with an emotion that could have almost been mistaken as concern if it wasn't for her earlier conversation with August.

Her friend had made it clear to her that the vampires had planned out their meeting to the smallest detail thanks to Alice's gift. They hadn't come to Mei with only with the hope of appealing to her heart in order to overcome her instinct of self-preservation.

Instead, they knew that she would truly have no choice or good reason to refuse their request if she wanted the semblance of safety that their coven could provide against the Volturi.

Mei didn't take kindly to being manipulated, but she did understand.

Sometimes to protect the ones that you loved, you had to do something that you never wished to do.

Her father had born that burden for her too many times for her to count, but there was an instance that she recalled.

She was young, very young, when she had clung to her father's shoulders as he raced them across hot sands.

She recalled the fear in her heart and how her breath caught in her throat as they fled from a being that she had yet to see with her own eyes. She simply felt the energy of an immortal pursuing them.

Mei remembered how her father had finally stopped, his bare feet sliding across the desert sand as his skin glimmered like diamonds. He turned to face their pursuant and another man appeared over the dunes.

His eyes were red like her father's, but while they both regarded him, the other man's attention was only on Mei.

Her father held out his hands, calling out the immortal's name and pleading with him to understand, to stop and let him explain. He claimed that they were friends and that he owed him at least that much.

It happened so fast that even Mei's memory couldn't find the moment when the vampire had moved.

She just remembered his head held between her father's hands as his body fell broken into the grit, his skin still shining like a jewel.

Loving people came with sacrifices.

The act of deboarding the plane and traveling from the airport to a sleek vehicle was nothing more than a blur in Mei's mind.

She held tightly to August's hand in the backseat while silently reveling in the way that Nahuel's body didn't feel too cool or too warm to the touch where his thigh was pressed along the outside of hers.

Mei still marveled at the fact that they were one in the same.

There were others like her and there were more out there than just Nahuel.

They had just passed a sign that read, "Forks" when Alice suddenly pressed down the gas.

If she wasn't as nearly as indestructible as the vampires in the vehicle then perhaps Mei would have been concerned with the way they were flying down the damp and winding road, snow encroaching on the shoulders of the asphalt.

"Come on, come on." Alice urged the vehicle under her breath before she suddenly whipped it off of the road and into the dirty gravel and snow that covered the small pull-off area she had found.

There were no houses in sight nor hiking trails but the small woman lept from the car as soon as it was in park and urged them all to do the same.

"Follow us!" Jaspar barked out and before Mei could blink, they were running through the trees.

She pushed herself hard to ensure that she kept up with the vampires.

Her time on the run with August lent to her speed and agility and it seemed that Nahuel was having no trouble keeping pace as well.

As suddenly as they had started their run, they came to a stop and Mei clutched August's hand once more as Alice tilted her head.

Voices were coming from a nearby clearing that Mei could sense not far ahead of them.

Within that clearing was an energy force that nearly floored the Asian woman.

Her fingers rose to her temple and August looked at her with concern before she gathered herself.

Never before had she been in the presence of a collective power such as this one.

She tried to separate the energies, to count them off and organize them, but she was having trouble doing so.

What really interested her was how one energy seemed to reach for her unlike all of the rest. It shone bright and hot, silver tinging its edges as it tendriled out as if trying to touch her.

Mei's interest in the force was interrupted by Alice sending a small frown her way that was laced with apprehension.

The frown stayed in place for a moment longer then Alice turned to her mate, lowering her voice but it did nothing to keep the immortals standing around the pair from hearing her words.

"Her future disappeared," She muttered and August's snarl that tore out of his chest in answer echoed around them.

In the blink of an eye, Nahuel's aunt, Huilen, was there and placing her hand over his mouth, but it was too late.

Mei felt the collective shift in the energy of those in the clearing.

They had been exposed.

"Jaspar and I need to go out there first. We will call you as witnesses, then you all should come out." Alice directed them quickly, her golden eyes bouncing between them all before settling on Mei's dark irises.

"Everything will be alright. I swear it." She vowed.

Then the couple was gone and all that was left in their wake was upturned snow and two pairs of half-bloods and their vampire companions.


	5. Chapter 5

"How many?" August asked from where he stood at Mei's side, his voice low as to not interrupt whatever was going on in the nearby clearing nor cause them to miss Alice's cue.

"I can't get a clear count," Mei admitted, her figure rigid with tension as she strained to separate energies but even the one that was bright and reaching fell within a giant web of connectivity that she couldn't begin to explain.

"Best guess." August insisted and the half-blood resisted the urge to hiss at him from annoyance.

"Thirty to forty on the side that Alice headed towards. I am going to guess that is the Volturi." She said softly.

"You can't tell the difference due to power?" Huilen asked, her voice low and steady.

Mei's dark eyes cut to the woman and she shook her head.

"Usually I would be able to. The Volturi is a force like no other, but the Cullen's group... they are strong." She told those around her.

Quiet fell between them as that sank in and abruptly, Mei felt a lightness blossom within August's energy.

For the first time since he had come back to see her surrounded by other immortals, he had some hope.

Forcing a small smile on her lips past her nerves and fear, Mei exchanged the expression with Nahuel whose eyes were on her before turning it to August.

"Actually, her future can be proven." Alice's tinkling voice echoed through the trees and Mei felt her energy reach out to them.

"Come on." She urged the small group, August's hand still clutched in her own as they raced to the side of the clearing.

They only slowed when they broke from the treeline, snow crunching under their shoes as they walked.

Mei and Nahuel were both in the middle, flanked by their guardian and protector on either side.

As they walked, the small Asian half-blood couldn't curb her own curiosity.

Her dark eyes scanned the crowds of vampires and her eyes widened at the sight of the giant wolf in the middle of the group.

Now seeing everyone, it was easier for her to separate their energies, but she found that the wolves were part of one of the two large nets that spread out along the edges of the clearings.

The wolves, they worked as one.

That meant the bright energy spot must have been a wolf as well.

"I have been gathering a few witnesses of my own," Alice said as they approached and now Mei's eyes rested on the large mass that the Volturi created like her companions' had been the whole time.

"Some among the Ticuna tribes in Brasil. Others were harder to locate due to their nomadic nature." Alice explained, gesturing first to Nahuel and Huilen and then to Mei and August.

With all eyes on her, Mei felt her breath quicken slightly though it seemed that Nahuel felt no such fear or he was simply better at hiding it than herself.

"The time for witnesses is past! Cast your vote, Aro!" Caius hissed before Aro held out a hand to silence him.

Seeing the leaders in front of her was like a swift kick to the gut.

She could hear the metallic screech as her father was torn apart just by looking at them.

"Speak and give witness as you came to do," Aro commanded the four of them.

Mei glanced at Nahuel, dropping August's hand as she took her fellow half-blood's before they both took a small step forward.

August lowered himself slightly, leaving no mystery that he would lunge at the first perceived threat towards the pair.

Before either of them could speak, however, Huilen moved forward to be back at their side and began her tale that started before Nahuel was a true part of the world.

Mei listened with interest, only hearing an abridged version of the story before since she had already known the works. Her father had told her of her mother's own struggles through pregnancy and her eventual death with Mei's birth.

He told her of the love she felt for Mei despite the pain.

As Huilen's account concluded, Aro looked closely at Nahuel.

"Nahuel, you are one hundred and fifty years old?" He asked, his authoritative voice ringing out clearly across the clearing for all to hear.

"Give or take a decade," Nahuel replied just as confidently. "We don't keep track."

Nodding his head, Aro seemed to consider his words before he turned his eyes on Mei.

The woman felt trapped under his bright red gaze, her already fast-paced heartbeat quickening that much more.

"Do not fear us, my child. We mean you no harm." Aro purred, his claim causing one of the vampires on the Cullen's side to hiss loudly.

Mei knew he was lying even without the other immortal's tell.

Intent within energy never lied.

"You killed my father." Mei bit out, deviating from their original plan to not mention that encounter as rage swept through her.

August was at her side in a heartbeat, his hand wrapped around her wrist to hold her back from an action she hadn't even committed.

Aro, Marcus, and Caius narrowed their ruby eyes at her for a long moment before Aro's widened once more.

"Haruhiko." He said simply, nodding his head and a snarl escaped Mei at the sound of her father's name leaving the leader's lips.

"Your father created a true immortal child, dear one. That was proven." He told her, defending their actions to the witnesses around them who had tittered over their conversation.

"He created an immortal child to hide my existence." Mei shot back. "He knew that you would kill me or keep me prisoner just as you would the Cullen child if her family had not met you with such force. If they did not have so many witnesses."

There was a wave of outraged hisses from the darkly cloaked ranks of the Volturi, Caius even letting out one himself at Mei's claims.

"Your father broke our laws, child. Will you deny this?" Aro replied cooly, not breaking his facade even as he looked into the enraged eyes of the half-blood.

She resisted the urge to suck the life force from his form, to pull his energy into her and leave him dust in the wind.

She knew if she attacked then it would create a war that neither side would walk away from unscathed.

"I will not, but he did so due to the fear that you rule by." She told him.

"You sound so much like our Revolutionary friend," Aro said, his voice lilting but tighter than it had been before.

Mei had gotten to him.

It seemed that he was fine with ruling by fear and intimidation as long as it wasn't brought to his attention that he was doing so. It broke the facade he had created for himself that the vampire world actually loved and respected both him and his brothers.

"The task at hand." Caius hissed and Marcus nodded in agreement with the redirection.

"What is your name Child of Haruhiko?" Aro asked.

"Mei."

"And you are how old?"

"One hundred and two," Mei told him without missing a beat.

"And you both reached maturity at what age?" Aro asked, directing the question at both half-bloods now though his red eyes remained on Mei.

"About seven years after my birth, more or less, I was full grown," Nahuel said before glancing at Mei.

The woman simply nodded in agreement with his claim.

"You have not changed since then?" Aro questioned.

"I have not," Mei said.

She could feel relief flood through the mass of energy at her back.

It seemed that they had soothed some of the Cullens' concerns.

"And your diet?" Aro pressed, seeming interested.

"Mostly blood, but some human food, too. I can survive on either." Nahuel replied.

"I prefer human food," Mei admitted, causing all of the leaders to turn to her.

"Why is that?" Caius questioned, sounding annoyed by her claim.

"Personal preference." She said, edging around answering the question.

"Your gift." Aro deduced for himself and it was only then that Mei realized he had of course seen her gift through Alice.

"Gift?" Caius questioned and now even Marcus was regarding her more closely.

"Energy Manipulation," Aro stated, causing the crowd of witnesses to whisper once more. "You're a truly intriguing creation."

His words were so filled with longing that Mei had to resist stepping back from him as Nahuel shifted at her side and August let out a low hiss that was returned by two of the Volturi's guards.

"We have answered your questions," Nahuel said, pulling the attention back to the matter at hand. Back to their witnessing rather than their unique traits.

"You were able to create an immortal?" Aro asked suddenly, seeming to be even more focused than before as he gestured towards Huilen.

He was searching for a justification of concern or fear.

"Yes, but none of the rest can," Nahuel explained.

A shocked murmur ran through the clearing.

"The rest?" Aro questioned. "Referring to Mei?"

"Her and my sisters." Nahuel elaborated, offering more information than Mei ever would have herself.

The revelation of their being even more of their kind seemed to shock Aro just as much as it had Mei.

"Perhaps you would tell us the rest of your story, for there seems to be more." Aro insisted and it was then that Nahuel seemed to realize he may have overspoke.

Left with no choice, the South American half-blood began to explain how his father was working to create more half-bloods. He hadn't even told Mei and August the details around the existence of his sisters and through the disgust in his voice as he spoke of him, Mei could understand why he hadn't.

"My father, Joham, he considers himself a scientist. He thinks he's creating a new super-race." He ended his explanation.

"Are you venomous?" Caius asked Mei and she shook her head.

She had no venom.

Caius' eyes looked past them then.

"Your daughter, is she venomous?" He demanded and Mei turned as well, noting the dark-haired vampire that he was directing his question towards.

"No," the female vampire said firmly.

Nahuel looked at the woman as well and it seemed that they had both come to the conclusion that she must have been the mother who survived the birth of her half-blood child.

Aro's eyes were locked on to the mass of immortals beyond their small group, seemingly weighing his options as he considered all that they had told him.

His quiet pause seemed to annoy his brother and Caius growled.

"We take care of the aberration here, and then follow it south," he hissed.

"Brother," Aro said softly to Caius when he finally spoke. "There appears to be no danger. This is an unusual development, but I see no threat. These half-vampire children are much like us, it appears."

"Is that your vote?" Caius demanded.

"It is."

Caius glowered.

"And this Joham? This immortal so fond of experimentation?" He pressed.

It was clear to Mei that the vampire was yearning for something to direct his frustrations towards.

"Perhaps we should speak with him," Aro agreed.

"Stop Joham if you will," Nahuel said without a care towards the man who had helped to create him. "But leave my sisters be. They are innocent."

Aro nodded once before he turned to his guard with a warm smile.

"Dear ones," He called out, voice carrying across the snow-covered field. "We do not fight today."

Together, the guard nodded in unison and straightened. It seemed that they accepted their leaders' decision without question.

Mei wondered if they were as hesitant to fight the Cullens' masses as they should have been or if they had an opinion at all.

Aro turned back to the Cullens, his expression carefully controlled while his brothers seemed to be furious and bored respectively.

As they stood silently with their guard at their backs, the witnesses on their side of the field began to hesitantly run off into the forest.

It seemed that they were as eager to leave the Volturi behind as any other.

Aro held his hands out to the group, seeming almost apologetic while his coven began to slowly leave with only his personal guard remaining at his side.

"I'm so glad this could be resolved without violence," He told the group, his voice sickly sweet as he looked at them. "My friend, Carlisle—how pleased I am to call you friend again! I hope there are no hard feelings. I know you understand the strict burden that our duty places on our shoulders."

"Leave in peace, Aro," A blonde male vampire, supposedly Carlisle, said stiffly. "Please remember that we still have our anonymity to protect here, and keep your guard from hunting in this region."

"Of course, Carlisle," Aro assured. "I am sorry to earn your disapproval, my dear friend. Perhaps, in time, you will forgive me."

Mei could barely believe that this was a conversation that was occurring, but it seemed that Aro could never resist flexing his power where he could.

He didn't want a force like the Cullens had gathered to feel like they had the Volturi on the run though they all knew it was the case.

Aro didn't let them live in peace only because they had provided evidence that resolved the situation.

Mei wasn't stupid enough to believe that and it seemed that Carlisle was not either.

Aro had weighed the loss versus the gain and found that leaving quietly was better for his reign in the long run.

"Perhaps, in time, if you prove a friend to us again." Carlisle dismissed.

Aro bowed his head, the picture of remorse, and drifted backward for a moment before he turned and ran off towards his retreating coven.

With his departure, silence fell over the clearing.


	6. Chapter 6

Mei stood stiffly in place between Nahuel and August as they stared at the trees where the Volturi had retreated into.

No one dared moved nor speak until finally, the brunette female, the mother of Alice's niece, broke the silent tension.

"Is it really over?" She whispered to her mate who beamed at her in return.

"Yes. They've given up. Like all bullies, they're cowards underneath the swagger." He told her before laughing.

Mei agreed that they were nothing more than cowards, but she wasn't sure she believed they had given up.

It was only when Alice laughed and confirmed that the Volturi had truly left that Mei turned to August with wide eyes.

Her friend smiled down at her as the clearing erupted in calls of victory.

She threw herself at him, wrapping her arms securely around his waist as he engulfed her in a hug.

Mei felt Huilen's hand give her shoulder a gentle squeeze and let go of August to smile at the woman before turning and hugging her nephew.

Nahuel chuckled, the sound musical amongst the howls and whoops of joy.

Mei was content to remain within the small circle of her new friends, but Alice's approach had them moving to interact with more than just those she already knew.

She was being thanked by a small vampire woman whose demeanor and hair color reminded her of warm caramel.

As usual, August was only a step behind her, stood over her shoulder quietly as she interacted with those eager to speak to her and thank her.

Mei was a bit overwhelmed after years of near solitude, but she was thrilled as well.

It was only when she was faced with Carlisle, who had come to join the caramel-haired woman that was revealed to be his mate, that she felt her attention wavering.

From the treeline emerged a group of tanned men, their chests bare and dark hair cropped short. Though they looked different, they all moved in a way that spoke of them being the same.

Their energies were connected.

They were the wolves like the one who had been standing in the center of the clearing, the one who had the young half-blood girl on its back.

Many of the vampires fell quiet as the pack approached, some hissed their discontent.

Mei watched them with curiosity even as August moved to place himself between them and her.

"They mean no harm," Carlisle said softly, attempting to reassure the over-protective vampire that was her best friend.

He stepped away then and moved to meet the apparent Alpha of the pack, the authority in the energy rolling off of the man being enough to clue Mei into his role in the pack.

However, it wasn't him who interested her.

What had sparked her curiosity the most was the energy pouring off of one of the men flanking him.

He had the energy that had shone so brightly.

He had the energy that had reached out to her.

Peering around August's broad shoulders, Mei sought out the man that acted as her own personal sun- a beacon of energy in her mind like no other.

His dark eyes were trained on the mass of vampires. She could read the discomfort in his expression as his lips pulled back slightly to bare his teeth.

It was threatening enough of an act in his human form that she could only imagine how it would look when he was shifted.

As if he felt her attention on him, or heard her prodding thoughts, the man's eyes swept over the crowd and fixated on her.

He seemed to give her a once over, regarding the red-eyed male standing protectively in front of her before his eyes met hers.

It was a supernova.

Their energies merged in a flash of energy so bright that Mei staggered backward.

The force was unseen by all others, only apparent to her eyes, but the male wolf was staring at her as if he could see it as well.

Wide-eyed, his jaw hanging loose, Mei could have sworn that he had just met the divine with the look his eyes held.

Chilled hands grabbed either of her arms and Mei ripped her gaze from the wolf's to look up at August who had steadied her.

His familiar ruby eyes held concern but she could only keep her focus on him for so long.

As he touched her, a feral snarl had torn across the clearing and left the snow-covered field silent once more.

Mei looked over to see her wolf- _the_ wolf- trembling, his dark eyes fixated on her.

"Paul!" The Alpha snapped, his deep voice ringing with an authority that had the man buckling for a moment though his eyes never left hers.

"Paul, man, chill out." Another wolf urged, his eyes turning to follow his packmate's and once they landed on Mei, understanding seemed to dawn behind them.

"Shit," The wolf cursed just as Edward muttered a curse of his own.

"What?" His mate, who Mei now knew to be Bella, asked him.

"The wolves always seem to find a way to complicate things." The mind reader replied, pulling a grumble out of the large chestnut wolf at his side.

The wolf headed towards the trees in the next second though Mei barely noted him leaving, she could barely hear August asking questions at her side, the only thing she could focus on was the bright line of energy connecting her to the wolf, to this _Paul_.

It was like the net that connected the wolves, but it was different.

It was brighter, stronger, and simply... different.

Another tawny-skinned male jogged out of the forest where the chestnut wolf had disappeared moments before.

He made a bee-line towards the pack, stopping at Carlisle's side and muttering something so low that neither Mei nor the vampires in the clearing could hear.

"Mei!"

The sound of her name finally reached her mind, pulling it from the wolf so that she could look up at August.

"Are you okay? What happened?" August asked her, his voice tight and frantic in a way that had her placing a slender hand against his chest to calm him.

"I am not sure." She admitted, looking at him for a moment longer before looking to the wolf pack just as the wolf from the center of the clearing said, "Calm down. We'll figure it out like I did. I promise."

"I am not sure, but August-" She began, regarding her friend carefully though she knew he would give into most any request she could make, "I want to talk to the wolves."


	7. Chapter 7

"The wolves?" August echoed, his voice tinged with distaste.

It was clear that he viewed the wolves as something to be avoided. A volatile unknown that could result in harm to her.

August was always set on keeping her from harm.

"They interest me, Auggie," Mei told him, her eyes scanning the energy net between the men that no one could see but herself.

"Their energy is... fascinating. They're all interconnected, a web of sorts." She explained the best that she could.

August looked between her and the nearby wolves, apparently spotting the one whose eyes were still fixated on her.

"That one is staring." He stated simply, meeting the man's gaze head on and hissing lightly.

"They are curious, my friend. Just like I am." Mei excused, knowing in her chest and due to the energy link between them that it was more than that but she was not yet willing to tell the man.

He was protective first and understanding second, if he felt there was any danger to her beyond the normal threat of another species then he would whisk her away and she respected him too much to put up a hard fight.

She couldn't allow herself to be taken away, not yet.

Mei had to understand what was going on.

She had to know if the wolf felt it too.

"Very well. Stay by my side" August conceded, offering her his arm and Mei beamed up at him.

"Of course." She agreed, knowing that it was easier to do so than have to navigate her way through another argument.

The pair had just begun to head towards the Wolfpack when Edward appeared in front of them.

"I am not sure that is the best idea." He said, his voice smooth but kind as he looked between them.

"They are allies, are they not?" August asked, his tone sharp.

It seemed that he could have concern over the wolves, but once he made a decision that they were something that he could handle, no one else could. Holding back a chuckle, Mei took a moment to lament on how much she loved her friend and all his quirks.

"Yes, but they are protectors first and foremost. They don't like vampires, especially not those who drink human blood." Edward explained and Mei smiled up at him.

"Well, it is a good thing that I am neither of those things then, isn't it?" She said, her voice like wind chimes in a summer breeze.

She knew that Edward was searching her thoughts.

She knew that he knew that she knew that.

Mei thought mainly in Japanese.

Mei focused on long division.

"Mei is unendingly curious," August explained further, knowing that they were the only two outside of the Cullens that seemed to have any kind of interest in interacting with the wolves.

"My daughter is the same way," Edward said with a gentle smile, looking towards his daughter and mate who stood with a trio of dark-skinned women in tribal clothing. "I'll introduce you to the pack."

With that settled, Mei and August followed the male vampire over to where his coven leader stood in front of the Alpha.

Carlisle's face was drawn, signs of concern or sympathy showing on it until Edward touched his shoulder and he schooled his expression into something more pleasant.

"Sam," Edward began, addressing the Alpha. "This is Mei, as you heard she is a hybrid like Renesmee. This is her companion, August."

His voice held a double edge that Mei almost placed as a warning.

It seemed that tensions between the Cullens and the pack were higher than what she had thought.

"Mei," Sam echoed, fully gaining Mei's attention with one word.

She looked him over before smiling softly, offering a hand out towards him as she knew was the custom in America. The Alpha hesitated a moment before reaching out and engulfing her hand in his.

His touch was warm, hot even, but Mei didn't flinch away. It wasn't an uncomfortable heat.

"I'm Sam. I'm the Alpha of this pack." He told her, deep voice rumbling from his chest before his hand left hers.

"I know," Mei said with a small nod, seeming to surprise the Alpha. "I also know that not all of these wolves are a part of your pack."

It seemed she may have hit a sore spot if the wolves' reactions were anything to go by. They shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot and Sam's face hardened.

Carlisle seemed like he was going to intervene but Sam spoke first.

"How do you know that?" He asked.

"Your energies, they are connected," Mei explained, looking between the wolves as she spoke and followed the streams of their interwoven energies.

"It's like a net." She followed the last line to the wolf whose energy was the brightest to her and then followed the stream from him to herself before smiling. "I must admit that is one of the reasons that I came over here. It's like nothing I've ever seen before. I was curious."

"You... _see_ energy?" One of the wolves behind the Alpha asked.

"I manipulate energy, so I suppose sensing or seeing it comes with the territory." She explained.

"Isn't energy just... _everything_ though?" Another wolf asked. This one was a younger male, the youngest in the clearing, and his energy wasn't connected to the majority of the wolves, but to the russet wolf from earlier and a few others.

"Good point," Mei replied, tilting her head a bit as she looked at him and smiled.

It really was a good point, one that she hadn't ruminated on before.

"I suppose that I see the energy that is important, that is potent." She reasoned, shrugging her shoulders.

"So, what does that mean exactly?" A low voice rumbled and Mei felt her breath catch a bit. "What can you do with that?"

The wolf's voice shot through her like an electric shock.

It was Paul who had asked the last question.

"That is none of your concern." August snapped in return, already on edge with the wolf who he had pegged watching Mei moments before and he also noted that the male's eyes hadn't left her since they approached.

"It's okay, August," Mei said, her voice soft and soothing as she reached out and threaded her arm back through August's to keep him in place. "They are just curious about me like I am about them."

Looking to Paul, she noted how his lips were pulled back and his eyes were hard as he looked at where Mei and August's arms were linked, but once his eyes met her's, they seemed to soften.

"It means that I have an influence, no matter how slight, in almost everything." She told him quite vaguely.

She knew that the vampires behind them were watching as well, listening to anything for future use and of interest so she decided to give them something.

Raising her left hand, Mei sought out something of worth and decided that the snow was something that she could use as an example.

Slowly closing her fist, Mei did as she had upon first meeting Alice and Jasper and drew energy from two large trees. She silently thanked them for their contribution even though energy was something constantly being recycled. The trees withered until they were nothing but dust, drawing the eyes of everyone in the clearing.

"Did you-" Carlisle began to ask, sounding stunned, but Mei simply smiled before opening her hand once more. With a sweeping motion, she had chosen a spot in the clearing where no one stood and began to heat the ground. The snow melted almost instantly and with a bit of her influence, sprouts began to press their way out of the soil.

"Energy can not be created or destroyed." She began.

"Rather it can be transformed from one form to another." Edward finished for her, sounding surprised himself.

"Exactly," Mei confirmed with a nod.

Many of the wolves looked distinctly uncomfortable with the woman's display of strength, a fact that had August looking a bit smug.

There were many reasons he had helped to keep the woman hidden- that display of power had been a major one.

She held an immense power.

Mei sought out the eyes that she needed to decode the most, not understanding fully why she needed to.

Behind them, she saw a mix of emotions but none were quite clear to her.

"Are you afraid?" She asked the wolf.

There was a beat of silence as those around them looked first at Mei, then at Paul who it was obvious her question was directed to.

"Are you?" He asked in return.

Mei didn't need for him to say another word for her to understand what he was referring to.

She knew for certain then that he felt the connection just as she did, that he knew there was something linking them even if he maybe couldn't see it like she could.

Now for the question, _was_ Mei afraid?

She had been when she realized that their connection might have been another thing that only she knew was there, but his question had surprisingly soothed her. It had been an answer to a silent question of her own.

"Do I need to be?" She asked and he immediately shook his head.

"You'll never need to be afraid again," Paul vowed.


End file.
